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Thanks for the Fox

Chapter 3: Road Trips and a Fox Memorial

Judy packed a light bag, the ridiculous one with the handles that looked like bunny ears that her parents tried several times to give her. She eventually took it. It came in handy for heading out to the park or keeping a single change of clothes if she was going jogging before work. The bunny did not like travelling far without at least enough supplies to last her an extra day, even if it was supposed to just be a day trip. Issues come up and it was certainly possible get stuck somewhere overnight. Her mother taught her some basic rules of travel and while she had not experienced that problem yet, she'd heard plenty of her family members say they had. The train she took left the station before the sun was even up. It would be a two and a half hour trip so she made sure her phone was fully charged and brought some granola bars to snack on.

The train going out to New Reynard was nearly empty. It would be bringing back more folks to the city of Zootopia than it would be taking out to the smaller town, obviously. The bunny fired up her phone and looked up some information about the town she was visiting. She looked for maps and places of interest. Judy was surprised to see just how small the town actually was. It was smaller than Bunnyburrow and pretty sheltered by forest from the satellite map she had pulled up.

The population was mostly vulpine which she found a little surprising. There were a few other places like that which she knew about. Obviously Bunnyburrow was heavily lapine, and the city of Fenrir was overwhelmingly wolf, but she hadn't really heard anyone talk about any particularly... foxy settlement. Perhaps it was not well known because it was so small. Was this where Nick's roots were? She felt a little guilty for asking him so little about his past and his family, but he really didn't seem to like to share any of that. Judy knew that she could be a little nosy when it came to personal matters and tried to keep it more passive with Nick. If he wanted to share, she listened. That was what she did.

She turned the map this way and that, little bunny claw tips tracing over the screen of her phone, and saw that the appropriately named Musk Street was the main thoroughfare through town. It featured the town hall, a school, a grocery store and a diner. Across the street from the town hall was a small cemetery which appeared to be the only one in town. That would be her immediate destination. The train station was actually just outside town, so there would be a short walk to get to that place. It didn't look like it would be more than about twenty minutes on foot however, so that was not really discouraging.

Judy leaned back and relaxed a bit. After about an hour of going back and forth between watching the city shrink behind her and the trees getting progressively denser, she heard her phone ring. She looked at it and gritted her teeth. It was Nick. He would have been getting ready for work, covering for another officer's shift right then. She hoped he didn't ask her to drop by or anything.

The bunny answered her phone. "Well good morning, Slick! Enjoying the working side of a traded day off?" she asked mirthfully.

"Blargh." Nick grumbled. "I barely slept a wink last night. But I feel a little better elsewise, ready to tackle the world. Do you want me to stop by your place with coffee or anything on my way in?" he asked. Judy's stomach tightened. She could not lie to Nick. It wasn't so much that she felt a moral imperative not to, given what was at stake, it was more that she sucked at lying and Nick saw through her like window glass.

She chimed brightly, "Nah, I am actually out and about. Besides, my place is like... the opposite direction for you, so why make your commute longer?" she laughed.

Nick replied in an even, friendly tone, "Because my bunny best friend has been very good and given me space instead of driving me nuts like I assumed she might. I needed it." He answered. Judy felt a pang of hard guilt like the striking of a gong. She was as deep in his business right now as she could possibly be without involving him directly. On top of that, Bogo was likely to ask him about therapy when he got to work today, and she knew it. It was a double helping of guilt. Nick continued on his end, "But, of course you are out and about, you do not believe in sleeping in and having a lazy morning, do you?" Nick teased. "What in the world required you to already be 'out and about' at this unholy hour?" the fox asked with the tone of a grin in his voice. Judy's mind raced. She had to put in enough truth so it wasn't a complete fabrication or he'd spot it instantly. She hated this.

Attempting to tamp down the caution in her voice, Judy said, "I'm running an errand for Gideon actually. He wanted me to check on something out in New Reynard for him... concerning his business, so I'm going out there. Probably not gonna get back before you get off, honestly." She winced. That sounded so half baked.

"New Reynard? I had family from there." Nick said with curiosity in his voice. "They have a great diner, but I kind of doubt their menu's gonna excite you." He laughed. At first, Judy felt like she was falling as Nick possibly put two and two together about why else she might go, but he had thankfully dismissed that instantly to talk about the sights instead.

Judy sighed and said softly, "I might check it out regardless. I only brought granola bars with me," she stated, wanting to keep the conversation from becoming deeper in meaning. "You be careful at work. I hate not being there to protect you from larger mammals," she brightly teased.

Nick stated confidently, "Oh, I suspect Bogo will have me in Sahara Square today. Keep it light. He knows I'm not as effective without my bunny backup." He sounded much more like his jovial self, which pleased Judy quite a bit. She relaxed a little more with the conversation not swiveling back around to Nick's family. This was punctuated by a sigh from the bunny which brought out a sharp retort from the fox. "Hey, no yawning!" the vulpine complained, misunderstanding the sigh. "I'm having enough trouble as... it... is..." he obviously yawned through the last part of the sentence. Judy smiled at that. Sleepy was better than catastrophically depressed.

The bunny smiled and said casually, "Okay slick, I will let you get back to work." She moved a claw tip to push the hang-up button on her phone.

"Oh, hey... Carrots?" Nick asked. It caused Judy's heart to sink. He knew something. He had to. She had almost succeeded and now the real interrogation would start. What was Gideon's business in New Reynard? Who was her contact? Nick knew everyone and he would know she didn't have a real contact. If she didn't have a contact, she'd never have gone all the way out to an unfamiliar place to help someone else with their business. This was a disaster before she'd even gotten her train seat warm.

"Yeah?" the bunny shakily replied, dreading whatever questions might be coming.

His voice was a little softer, more serious as he said, "I want you to be careful in New Reynard. They don't have a lot of... diversity out there. Like... You are gonna run into folks that might never have even seen a bunny before, I'm dead serious." Judy was so relieved by the direction of conversation that she barely even registered that she might be going somewhere unpleasant based on what her partner was saying. She didn't care about that, she wasn't sunk. Nick continued. "They are out of the way for a reason, and the train stop's only been there a couple of years. I don't know if it's gotten much better than when I was a kid but just... be careful. Don't do a bunch of wandering around beyond what you are there to do. They are ... a curious and suspicious lot and you obviously are gonna be out of place." Judy listened carefully to Nick. She had not considered that she was genuinely going to be in danger on this private mission of hers, but she was still ready to face it. Surely this town was not lawless. She would only be checking out the cemetery, maybe the diner, and heading back out. She would make sure she was not followed before heading back to the train station, just to be sure.

The bunny finally responded to her partner after she got her nerved reigned in again. "I'll be careful. I'm going right from the station to Musk Street and then back. I have no reason to be anywhere else." She was being honest about that at least and hoped that comforted her partner a little. She didn't want him worrying enough to ask more questions. Judy really hated being evasive or untruthful to Nick but it just was not worth it to have him upset again with all he was already going through. This was personal to Judy and did not need to involve him directly.

After a moment of silence from his side, Nick responded, "Thanks, Fluff. Message me when you leave there, will ya?" That was actually touching and unexpected to Judy, giving her pause. Nick cared about her. That wasn't an outright surprise on its own, of course. She knew he did, but little reminders of their friendship were always treats to the somewhat sentimental grey bunny.

Judy smiled and answered sunnily, "I will, Slick. Talk to you soon!" She disconnected the call and groaned, pinching shut her violet eyes. She knew the risk she was taking in possibly really irritating him, but this would be a quick, uneventful trip and she'd be right back and there would be nothing to say about it. Her message would be delivered and her heart at ease. A mother's peace was paramount to the bunny now. Judy knew it would give a bunny some peace too. This was too much of a loose end for her to endure.

The rest of the trip was uneventful save for her mom messaging her and telling her that one of her cousins had called off a wedding. Judy was sure she had not even been told one was planned in the first place, leading to a little confusing back and forth with her mother. Being a part of a larger family, someone always had something going on. It was often hard to keep track of it. Judy had apparently been told, but the engagement happened around the same time Nick graduated the academy. She was so focused on that event, she just didn't remember at all. It had only been a few months but it already felt like forever ago. Life in the city was so busy.

Right then, however, Judy was not in the city. The train slowly glided into the rather new Briar Point Station and the bunny finally disembarked. As the train's brakes hissed, she stood stark still. There was utterly nothing there. It was a strip of concrete out in the middle of the forest that honestly looked like it belonged in a story book just over the words 'once upon a time a bunny went into the woods'. She was a little unnerved by the scene. The residents there obviously liked keeping the natural splendor. Perhaps the train station was positioned far from town to reduce noise. Judy knew Nick liked the quiet. The scent was lovely, however. Wisteria and honeysuckle were heavy in the air, and the warm breeze cast mottled patches of sun back and forth over the ground. Judy suddenly wondered if Nick might want to come here with her some time just to hang out. Taking a deep breath, the rabbit set out for town.

No cars passed her as she walked on the narrow, two-lane road, and the birds in the trees sang their chorus for the young slender lapine to experience as she hiked. The density of the forest meant that it stayed cool without the morning sun bearing down on the lapine as she walked. She enjoyed a remarkably pleasant journey in this way to the edge of town. A large wooden sign marked the beginning of town clearly, and it looked well cared for and tidy.

Judy was aware, from a tour of Zootopia she was given by Wolfard, that the region most of the foxes in Zootopia called home was not at all neat and tidy. Happytown was practically a slum. However, this place was actually very close to what Judy would feel obligated to call a 'small town paradise'. She immediately liked it. As she entered the town proper and ascended a hill, the center of town became visible through the trees. It was a considerably less wooded and boasted a very eye-catching feature in the center of town. In the middle of a lovely park was a large white stone statue of a fox with a feathered cap and a long bow.

The slightly kneeling and carefully tended figure held a small bag out to the eager paws of a couple of obviously under-fed raccoon children. This was not a surprising cultural icon to see in the center of this particular town. Judy moved over to look at it more closely. She wondered if it was considered poor manners to take pictures. Her mom and dad loved the old town culture in Bunnyburrow and Judy was sure they'd like this a lot too. Her quiet admiration of the artistic representation of this figure was interrupted by a small voice behind her.

"Rabbit?" She turned and saw no one at eye level. She immediately looked down and her heart nearly exploded with delight. A little fox kit stood there before her with very round eyes, regarding her with furious curiosity.

"Well hello there!" Judy greeted kindly.

The kit laughed a little, ears perking with interest. "You sure are a bunny," the red fox said with a big grin. He looked a lot like she suspected Nick might have at that age, maybe seven or eight, except this one's eyes were bright blue. His face was round and nose small and pointy. He wore a black collared shirt and tan slacks, something tidy for school. It was early enough he was likely on his way there, since it was just down the street. Judy liked most kits and cubs, as was natural, but this particular one inexplicably provoked her maternal instincts almost as hard as her own younger siblings did. She knelt down, the little kit backing up a little, thick fluffy tail flitting side to side. Judy briefly reminded herself of what her partner had said. Some of them might never have seen a bunny before. She needed to make a nice impression.

"I am, yes!" Judy stated in an intentionally softer than normal tone. "My name's Judy. I'm just visiting for a short while," she explained. She was careful not to seem too boisterous, as spooking the children here did not seem to be a useful way of conducting herself in a new place.

The kit then spoke excitedly. "Cool! Do you know who that is?" he pointed up at the statue with his thumb.

Judy nodded, still kneeling down with the little fox. "I do. He's a hero to a lot of us bunnies too, you know. He helped everyone, so long as they needed it," she explained. While her feelings for a noble thief were a little mixed, given her profession, she certainly didn't want to offend the kit if he regarded that fox as a role model. After all, that particular fox's story was more about justice and fairness than crime. The kit bounced a bit on his heels.

"Yup! And since you know that, we don't hafta capture you!" Judy blinked at that, and the kit turned and darted toward the school. He exclaimed, "Bunny's cool, abort the operation!" Four other kits of similar pattern and color darted out from behind a hedge near the statue and followed the other russet child. They looked like they might all be brothers. Judy chuckled a bit, and then rubbed the back of her head. She wondered what would have happened if she hadn't satisfied them in their test concerning the vulpine hero.

Wistfully, she found herself imagining those little kits running around this sweet and innocent town, getting into the normal trouble little kits that age get into. It was easy to picture them having the kind of adventures she did at that age, getting home too late or covered in mud and getting in trouble with mom. The bunny widened her eyes again and considered that. Had she ever considered foxes in such a tender fashion before she met Nick? How different was she from the days of her less experienced youth?

She then quietly wondered if this town was more like what the fox community in Zootopia might look like if mammals were less unkind to some of the more maligned species in the city. Was this what their communities were supposed to be like? Judy grimaced. Long game. Nick was playing the long game. Hopefully one day it would be like this for them as well.

She turned around again and looked out beyond the statue, seeing the cemetery. The happy thoughts of little fox kits tumbling around in the grass or play-fighting with sticks as swords evaporated. Instead, the loss of Vivienne Wilde registered in her mind again. She was not here on a vacation or to connect with more foxes. Judy had a sad and singular purpose. The dark iron gate was clearly visible as it rose higher above the old-looking neat stone wall around the cemetery. Judy made her way to the entrance. That was her goal. She padded in that direction, starting to see a few other mammals out and about. A few stopped and stared at the bunny heading toward the final resting place of their shady, tranquil community. She suddenly felt a little self-conscious. What possible reason would a rabbit have to be there? Nick warned her to not look suspicious but a bunny in a fox cemetery? How right was that supposed to look? She took a breath and held it a moment as she passed the gate, then sighed heavily, silently ridiculing herself for her kit-hood superstition.

Parts of the cemetery seemed pretty old, but it was still not very large. It really was a very small town. She wandered back and forth slowly, cautiously peeking up from time to time to see how much attention she was getting. A few folks stopped outside the gate and talked a bit and then dispersed but so far no one was moving to approach her. She was reading names as fast as she could near and far, furtively glancing about before she found a dark colored headstone. It was not very large and had the name Wilde. It was situated under a large and particularly old tree. Judy moved briskly over to it. She drew in a deep breath.

John Wilde

1967 - 1991

Semper Amare

The date was about 26 years prior. It had to be the one. Judy looked at the plot curiously.

There was a spot beside it. It was clear enough to see it was a double plot as most of them were, but there wasn't a grave marker present for Vivienne. Judy furrowed her brow. Would they bury her without one if she didn't have money for one? Wouldn't they mark it at least somehow? It didn't make any sense. John was right there, where was his mate? Judy sighed.

"What 'zactly are ye' lookin for?" came a raspy voice behind her. It made the bunny literally jump about four feet into the air. She turned in mid jump and landed on all fours, ready to bolt. The fox before her did not look fit to chase her. He looked so old that Judy was not certain he came into the cemetery with a clear plan of leaving it. He was light russet and silver with dark points and a very nice cream-colored suit. He appeared to be dressed in his Sunday best. He perked a bit at Judy's reaction. "Whoo-ee, you guys really are on springs, entcha?" He gave a raspy laugh which led into a worrisome cough. The bunny's heart raced. If he died while she was with him that would really cheese off the town, she bet. She calmed herself and rubbed the back of her head.

"I was looking for a friend's mom, but she doesn't seem to be here," Judy offered.

"Yer friend a Juniper?" he asked. The rabbit tilted her head.

"A Juniper?" she asked.

The vulpine codger replied in his raspy voice, "...Juniper family's the only bunnies restin' here. They'll be o'er on the front side where all them clovers been planted." He waved a paw toward them. Judy's eyes fixed, however, on his paw. It looked like it was already just bones covered in dark silver-flecked velvety fur. She shook her head, refocusing.

The bunny offered helpfully, "Oh no. I'm Judy Hopps. My friend's a fox, and that's his dad." She nodded down at the headstone.

The elderly fox mused quietly a moment and then said, "Oh, I gotcha now." He wheezed. "I'm Elliot Scritchard. I'm the caretaker here. Ent many of the Wilde's still in New Reynard, they mostly packed up and headed fer the big city. That's where you are more'n likely to find more of 'em." He nodded.

Judy gestured down to the simple grave in front of her. "Well, the one I am looking for would have been this one's mate, so I was sure she'd be here. Do foxes ever request to be apart like that?" she asked.

"No, gen'rilly not," the older vulpine wheezed. "But if she was hard up, and went inside of Zootopia, she'd likely not have made it back here unless family brought her." Judy suddenly felt hollow as she felt the blood leave her face. Nick didn't find out Vivienne died until a couple of weeks after. He could not have claimed her in order to bring her home. If Nick actually thought he was responsible for his mother not being laid to rest with his father... The bunny cupped her little muzzle. It was even worse than she thought. How would they even fix that?

Judy finally spoke a bit numbly, "Do you know what they might have done with her? Is there a place they take foxes who are unclaimed to rest?" She asked this in a very meek tone. What right did she have to even inquire about that?

"You rilly care about foxes," the old, smartly dressed caretaker rumbled thoughtfully. He gazed at her with blue-grey eyes oddly piercing and sly despite his age. His ears went back and he stated sadly, "You won't like this answer none at-tahl then. See, if no one's gonna put them to rest, the city converts them t' ashes and it's the freedom on the wind fer them foxes."

Judy's mouth fell open and she felt her heart drop to her feet and tears collect at the corners of her wide eyes. Oh no. Vivienne. Did Nick know that? Did he actually know what would have happened to her? His father would be alone in this quiet cemetery forever because his own son hadn't been there for his mate after he was gone. It was utterly unthinkable. No wonder this had made Nick hate himself so much. Judy was wholly unprepared for just how bad this could have been for her partner.

"Julie?" The voice of the caretaker shook her from her runaway realization.

Judy jerked slightly, not even caring that he got her name wrong. She gasped out, "That's... terrible..." Tears finally escaped, silently rolling down her grey-toned cheeks.

"There, there, little bunny... So emotional..." Judy flinched even more at that, the unintended consequence being that she thought harder about Nick. She couldn't stand up any more, going awkwardly to her knees and then just crying freely. She felt so stupid. She couldn't fix this. She couldn't help her friend through this. It was damage that could not be undone, and Nick absolutely blamed himself for all of it. The older fox leaned over. He groaned a little as he did. He likely was not finding it easy to bend in any direction anymore. "It'll be alright, young lady. It's okay."

"No! It's awful... It's so messed up... They all deserved better than this!" she choked out.

"Naw, now hear, hear... it's not as bad as all that now," he tried to comfort the shaking doe, "...don't ye cry, foxes are sentimental, sure, but we're also a hardy lot. Some of us e'en prefer the wind to the box, ye know?" Judy struggled to regain her composure. She was definitely making a scene at this point, crying over Nick's father's grave like she was family. From how Clarabelle had been speaking, it did not seem Vivienne was highly social, and Nick would not likely have been a listed contact for her if he'd walked out so long ago. It was not only possible, but likely that her fate was exactly as the caretaker said. Ashes to the wind. Vivienne Wilde was just... gone. John Wilde now rested alone. Their son was left to suffer for his mistake. Judy stood up shakily and sighed, wiping her eyes. The bunny looked back to the older vulpine. She could at least show gratitude for his help.

She spoke shakily, "Th-Thank you so much for helping me, Elliot. I am still... Very glad I came here. I had never even seen pictures of this place." She looked around the beautiful town, quiet cemetery, and listened to the softly swaying boughs of the trees overhead. "I am just... stunned to see how lovely it is. You have such a beautiful town." Complementing the town and showing her polite appreciation to the other fox helped Judy pull herself out of the swirling maelstrom that had formed in her heart. She had not been ready for the full realization of just what kind of permanent harm this likely did to her closest friend.

The older fox chuckled a bit, looking back toward town before saying, "It ain't all pretty like this everywhere, 'specially 'round in the hills and at the crick, but the town center's kept up lovely, yer right. I rilly am sorry I didn't have better news for you and yorn." Elliot murmured.

"It's fine, at least I am not just scratching my head over a total mystery." Judy stated. "I know myself well enough to know I would have dumped a lot of time into solving it. It wouldn't have hurt any less if I found out after all that, I'm sure," she sighed.

"Why were ye searching for this fox's mate again?" Scritchard asked curiously. Judy looked up at him as he asked that. It was a fair enough question after he'd helped her as he had.

She answered, "I had hoped to tell her that her son was doing okay and that he has lots of friends who are taking good care of him, but I guess there's not a place to really... do that now." Judy sighed. Elliot smiled wryly at her, and she was a little shaken by how it reminded her of Nick's more genuine smile, the one that he only used when he really meant it. The fox murmured softly again, this time nearly in a whisper as he leaned down close. He placed a paw on Judy's left shoulder.

"Shore there is, Julie." He stated in that rattling ancient tone, appearing suddenly so full of the wisdom of all his years. Judy looked into his eyes which peered deeply into her own, his smile sweet and tender. She could not bring herself to interrupt him to correct him on her name. He continued, "There always was... You kin tell her anythin' ye want right here..." He slid his paw down, and placed his palm over Judy's heart. Her breath caught. "... You love her blood kin, then she can find her way there jest fine no matter where she's gone." Judy placed her smaller fingers over the wrinkled older paw and then pulled herself up fully and looped an arm around his shoulders. She hugged the possibly centenarian vulpine gently, but close. She sniffled a bit and then leaned back, smiling to him with tears still in her eyes.

"Thank you, Elliot, again. I... I'm so glad I got to meet you here today." He smiled back, standing up a little straighter.

"Same here, bunny..." He paused a bit, ears back, as if uncertain, but his features softened and he spoke again slowly, "Say, yew might feel a little better if you snap up a bit to eat at the Diner. They have themselves a nice steamed up veggie medley that will pick a bunny up jest right I bet. You should head o'er there before ye leave. Ah do insist. Knowin' this was hard and all, 'druther you didn't try to travel till you've had something there."

Judy sucked in a deeper breath, and then stated, "You know what? I think I will. Thank you again, so much!" The bunny nodded as happily as she could to him and padded down the forested path out to the gate of the grave yard. The sun had risen above the trees at the edge of town by that point, so more mammals, all vulpine from what she could tell, were milling about. Four of them were by the gate but dispersed as Judy approached. They were content that she was not digging up graves, perhaps. Maybe one of them had sent the kindly living artifact to check her out. At least he would have nothing terrible to report to them. Judy walked down the sunny sidewalk toward the diner, feeling a little warmer. She would, when she got home, do exactly what Elliot suggested. She would tell Vivienne what she wanted to tell her in her own heart. Then, when Nick was ready to talk about it, she would use the old fox's own speech to comfort her partner. When he was ready.

*************

The diner was spacious and clean. Those were the things Judy noticed first, but the spaciousness might have been magnified by the fact that aside from one middle-aged male vulpine in a dark suit who immediately folded his paper and got up to leave, she was the only customer. It was mid-morning on a Monday in a small town, so she had no idea if that was normal. Thankfully, the fox that got up did not seem to do so because of Judy, since he didn't appear to actually notice the bunny until he got almost right up to her on his way out. Judy found it kind of humorous how startled he looked, and she smiled brightly at him before hopping up to the adjustable stool at the wrap around counter.

There were two vixens working in the diner. One was black-furred with silver points, getting up there in her years and a little bit heavy-set. The other was a russet one who appeared a bit younger than the first, but not by much. She had markings more similar to Nick's. The lack of uniform on the first and the red and white striped apron-style uniform on the second made it seem that the first was a manager.

Predictably, the manager spoke up to get the other vixen's attention. "Bea... Bea! Customer up!" Her voice was gruff and scratchy, leading Judy to think the vixen in charge would be going on a smoke break soon enough. The one with the striped uniform approached Judy, though she seemed a little apprehensive. She appeared to be in her 50's at least, a bit of silver dusting the top of her angular muzzle. Old fashioned prejudices might still have been framed within her so the bunny decided to be as friendly as possible, smiling warmly up at her to try to help dispel her concerns. Judy was not nervous at least, which was welcome. The lady fox brightened up a little.

"We don't get a lot of bunnies here in New Reynard, I do hope the kids didn't hassle you too much," the vixen stated. Her voice was clear and sweet, but she did not seem to have the country accent that the bunny noticed from Elliot.

Judy smiled half-heartedly, still feeling a little emotionally derailed from the final result of her road trip, "Oh, it's okay, Bea. I met a few of them, they were sweet and polite," Judy answered. She was careful to use the waitress' name she'd heard her manager use to seem more personable. Elliot had been careful to do that, so Judy assumed it was significant in this place. It might well have been a custom here and she wanted to play by their rules. Nick's warning was still clear in her mind. The bunny continued, "Not a lot of call for us to wander out this far I guess." She tried to perk up after saying it because she realized she still sounded lost in thought and didn't want the vixens here to think she was not enjoying being near them. That simply wasn't the case.

"Well then, what'll you have - Wait, I know you..." Her eyes widened and she ticked a claw on her chin a moment, and then held it up, her eyes widening even more. They were brilliant emerald like Nick's. That made it harder for the bunny to chase away her glum feeling. Judy didn't know enough foxes to know if that was terribly common. Gideon had blue eyes, as did the kit she saw earlier. She decided to go ahead and get into the conversation to try to get around her emotional state.

The bunny answered cautiously, "I'm here from Zootopia, so - not a local."

Bea clapped her paws together, nodding emphatically, "The bunny police officer, right? It's the black-tipped ears. You got yourself all over the news, even all the way out here. The purple eyes... and small frame, I know I'm right." The waitress smiled warmly at her. Judy smiled back at her and nodded, affirming her suspicions. Hopefully her name was not a swear word in this place after the mistakes she made early on. Bea continued. "I don't watch the news much myself, I admit, but when I started working here a while back they were still talking about you in the diner a lot. Is that job really difficult with you being so much smaller?" the fox asked. Judy initially worried that this would turn into one of the rather cold question and answer sessions about that ill-fated press conference, but that query was actually closer to one of the common school presentation questions.

Judy smiled weakly and responded. "It can be, but we are pretty good about directing the right people to the right job. I messed up a lot early on of course, but I think I'm in kind of a groove now. I may not have a lot of me to give, but I give it all." She nodded at that. She wanted to get the conversation away from her and back toward steamed veggies.

"The sheriff here's actually not a fox, did you know that? He's a badger," Bea further prevented vegetables from happening. This diner would be great for dieting. "There's not a ton for the two deputies to do here. I mean... worst we get is a little too much drink in someone and lost kits. Kits don't seem to have the sense of direction I remember having when I was little." She turned around a few times in a somewhat comical spin. Judy finally realized with a resurgence of gladness that Bea was obviously trying to cheer her up with the light-hearted small talk. The waitress had easily picked up that the bunny came in a bit gloomy. With Judy cracking a smile, she leaned down a little closer. "Not to pry, but what brings Zootopia's only bunny cop to the region's most foxy settlement?" she picked up her laminated menu to hand to Judy. "You seemed a bit down when you came in, that's why I was worried someone said something to you." she appeared concerned. In a town like this she probably knew everyone. Maybe she knew someone who was likely to say something unkind.

"No, I came looking for someone who was from Zootopia to tell her about her son." Judy could not help but sound sad at that last part. Ultimately she had failed, and while Nick would not have even wanted her here doing this in the first place, she felt like she kind of failed him too. Her feelings about what he was going through were so much worse for her discoveries. She was not even aware that her ears were down her back again until Bea spoke again.

"Oh dear..." Bae's tone made it sound rather dire. She leaned back a little, taking the menu out of reach. Apparently customers did not get menus until they had satisfied the waitress' curiosity. Judy was okay with that. She was patient.

Judy sighed, leaning forward a little. "It's alright. Just... A sad mission to be on is all," she explained. She didn't want to bring the two vixens down, and while the dark-furred one had not said anything, she was obviously listening, one ear actually turned noticeably to the two as they talked. It was probably really hard to keep a secret in a town like this. The bunny did not want to seem like she was dodging questions though, as Nick said that foxes here tended to be suspicious. She just wanted to enjoy a quick bite to eat and get out on the next train. After a short pause from Bea, Judy caught her voice again, lilting sweetly, if cautiously.

"Well, being here and with what I do, and how we all talk, maybe I can help you find this lady. A vixen I am assuming? It's sad, I know, but it's an important job. If we can help, we sure will." She nodded, looking a bit more pleasant. The older manager vixen nodded at that too, though she looked more curious than sweet, not really cracking a smile to Judy.

"Can't hurt." Judy shrugged. "I was looking for Vivienne Wilde." Judy heard the sound of a laminated card hitting the floor, and looked up to the fox waitress. She looked positively blank and had dropped the menu she was holding. Judy's mind raced. Did she know Vivienne? The bunny's heart sped up. Judy suspected that Nick's father had been from this town since he was buried here, but had Vivienne been from here too? Was the waitress related to her and the subject of Vivienne's passing still a painful subject to bring up? Had there been much delay in them finding out with what happened to her? Judy might well have been tromping heavily on an open wound.

"V-Vivienne Wilde? Are you... Are you certain?" she asked.

Judy inhaled deeply and murmured softly, "I'm afraid so, yes. I'm sorry..." The look of distress in the waitress' eyes was alarming. It was definitely the expression of someone who was feeling crushed, a terrible wound re-opened. The russet vixen turned around, as if to look away from a scary movie. The dark-toned vixen came over as well, placing a gentle paw on her shoulder.

"It's okay. It's alright, dearie, no one else is here," the manager murmured reassuringly. Judy felt a lurching realization that Nick's mother's friends and family in this town might not even_know_ she had passed. This might well be the first news anyone here had of it.

Bea squeaked out, "I..." She leaned back against the counter, hugging herself. Judy felt a lot less hungry all of a sudden. She had been the one to inform family members of deaths before. It was never easy but this felt a lot closer to her heart. She was seeing Nick's pain in her eyes too, particularly with the emerald color. The waitress took a shaky breath.

Judy spoke up again in a half-whisper, "It's okay. This probably is the worst place to have brought it up." The vixen turned back around, cupping her muzzle in both paws, eyes wet. Judy swallowed back her own emotions. She should not have come in here.

Bea sniffed and whimpered out, "Don't apologize. It's not your f- I mean, you are just here doing your job. Not like I haven't been here before." Judy blinked at that. Her job? She wasn't acting in the capacity of her job, this was personal, but before she could correct the vixen, Bea continued with a suddenly raspy voice. "I knew... Somehow I knew this would be how it would go." A tear rolled down her cheek. Her manager leaned in closer behind her, looking very concerned, putting a paw on her shoulder comfortingly. Judy felt that the darker-toned vixen was about to have to work the diner alone for a bit given the level of obvious distress.

The manager whispered tenderly, "Bea, it's okay. I've got this, take all the time you need, go if you need to." The russet lady fox held a couple fingers up to silence her, which might be seen as pretty rude, if it were not for the unfortunate and emotional circumstances.

Bea said in a slow, sorrowful tone, "Bunny, please understand, I don't ... have any ill regard for you, but this is a really bad day for me, so don't prance about the subject. You tell me right now... What happened to my son? What happened to Nicky?" Tears rolled down Bea's face freely as she asked that, paws clasped tightly together over her heart.

Judy slowly widened her eyes in utter shock at the vixen with mournful emerald eyes as realization came down over the grey doe like an avalanche. Not Bea. The manager wasn't calling her Bea. She had been calling her 'V'. The lady fox standing before Judy was Vivienne Wilde.